The FTC shares your frustration over the Xbox Game Pass price hike

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) expressed concerns in a letter to the US Appeals Court about Microsoft’s recent changes to its Xbox Game Pass service following its acquisition of Activision. The FTC highlighted a price increase for the Game Pass Ultimate, now costing $20 a month, which is $3 more than before and a 17 percent year-over-year increase. The agency described these changes as “exactly the sort of consumer harm” they were worried about.

In addition, the agency drew attention to Microsoft’s decision to end the $11 console Game Pass plan. The agency added a new Game Pass Standard tier, but it costs more at $15 per month. While it’s a step up from the barebones core plan, it doesn’t include access to day-one releases, which is why the FTC calls it a “diminished product.” Microsoft will completely end the console tier just before the release of the next Call of Duty game, the FTC said. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be available to play through Game Pass from its launch date on October 25, meaning subscribers who want to use it on day one will have to pay $20 per month.

The company promised that “the acquisition would benefit consumers by making [CoD] available on Microsoft’s Game Pass the day it is released on console (with no price increase for the service based on the acquisition), the FTC wrote. But Microsoft’s actions demonstrate that the company is “using market power after the merger “, it noted.

The FTC repeatedly challenged Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard, but a judge rejected its request for an injunction. At the time, a judge ruled that the FTC failed to show how the merger would lessen competition, even saying there was “record evidence” showing “increased consumer access to Call of Duty and other Activision content.”

Microsoft, which officially closed the $69 billion deal in October 2023 after that decision and the blessing of EU and UK regulators, now officially owns Activision Blizzard. But the FTC still didn’t object to the merger, filing a complaint to try to block the deal already in place, telling the court it can prove its case by showing Microsoft has the ability and incentive to block Activision’s games. In February, the agency also accused Microsoft of breaking its promise to let Activision Blizzard operate independently after the acquisition, after the company laid off nearly 2,000 workers in its games division.